Certain gas streams, such as blow-by gases from the crankcase of diesel engines, carry substantial amounts of entrained oils therein, as aerosol. The majority of the oil droplets within the aerosol are generally within the size of 0.1-5.0 microns.
In addition, such gas streams also carry substantial amounts of fine contaminant, such as carbon contaminants. Such contaminants generally have an average particle size of about 0.5-3.0 microns. It is preferred to reduce the amount of such contaminants in these systems.
A variety of efforts have been directed to the above types of concerns. Examples are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,853,439; 6,171,355; 6,355,076; 6,540,801; 6,758,873; 6,143,049; 6,290,739; 6,852,148; and U.S. Publication 2005/0193694, each if which is incorporated herein by reference. The variables toward which improvements are desired generally concern the following: (a) size/efficiency concerns; that is, a desire for good efficiency of separation while at the same time avoidance of a requirement for a large separator system; (b) cost/efficiency; that is, a desire for good or high efficiency without the requirement of substantially expensive systems; (c) versatility; that is, development of systems that can be adapted for a wide variety of applications and uses, in some instances without significant re-engineering; and, (d) serviceability; that is, development of systems which can be readily serviced after prolonged use.